Books for Wider Horizons - Taking Storytimes to Young Children

Posted by Laurie Willhalm on Tuesday, March 4th, 2014

Books for Wider Horizons - Expanding the library beyond its walls.

Every week about 60 dedicated volunteers read to children in 40 preschools in Oakland. They have been trained, tested, and sent forth to share their joy in language and literature with some of Oakland's youngest children.

These wonderful folks have committed themselves to a pretty rigorous schedule. They spend more than 20 hours over a period of two weeks in training. Then, once they are ready, we ask them to read 30 minutes a week at a Head Start or other preschool. That may not sound like a lot of time, however most volunteers spend hours choosing books, songs and fingerplays the children will enjoy.

One of our volunteers has been with the program for almost twenty years, as long as Books for Wider Horizons has been in existence. Others take on multiple time slots, because they love it so much. Several manage to fit their storytime reading into their lunch break. Others are retired but have multiple volunteer positions.

All are dedicated, love literature, and enjoy young children. What a fabulous group of people to work with!

If you are interested in joining this committed and caring group of people, call us at (510) 238-7453. We conduct training sessions once a year, during the fall. If you can't wait to volunteer, there are other volunteer opportunities we can suggest.